One of two LG45 Tourers entered by Lagonda for the 1936 Monte Carlo Rally was the undisputed star of the H&H sale at Race Retro, Stoneleigh on Saturday, March 13, 2010. Though the car slid out of the rally after just 200 miles, this Lagonda survived the last 74 years without further mishap and, resplendent in cream coachwork complemented by green leather upholstery, it sold for £167,200 – way over even its top estimate.
The motorsport-orientated sale contained a number of fast Fords, including the 1975 Haynes of Maidstone Escort RS1800 campaigned so successfully in period by former European Rallycross Champion John Taylor. Still sporting the same bodyshell with which it ended its period career and original Terry Hoyle BDG cylinder block, KKL 280P is widely regarded as one of the most original RS1800 rally cars in existence and unsurprisingly returned £99,000. The stunning RS1600 built by David Sutton for Stig Blomqvist to contest the 2007 East African Safari Classic made an estimate topping £77,000.
Beautifully presented and very rare (reputedly one of only 37 RHD examples made), the 1959 Jaguar XK150 S 3.4-Litre Drophead Coupe was always destined to cause great interest. Thought to have covered just 80,000 miles from new, it found a new home for £69,300. Arguably the most historically intriguing of all the cars on sale was the 1947 Healey Elliott, FGD 288. Save for the gold-coloured body (a 1970’s aberration) the car still looks very much as driven in the 1952 Daily Express Trophy by Works Healey driver Ken Wharton and countless races, sprints, hillclimbs and rallies by avid privateer Edgar Wadsworth. It attracted much interest and made above estimate at £44,000.
The sale featured a number of desirable Porsches, including the 1973 911 known as the ‘Martini’ car in deference to its livery. Winner of the 2009 Post Historic Irish Tarmac Championship and nicely presented for sale, it fetched £42,900. The superbly-finished copper bronze-coloured 1980 911 Turbo changed hands for £20,625, while the road rally-prepared, 1961 356B returned £20,350.
An excellent sale rate of 90% was achieved for the motorcycles, many of which comfortably exceeded their estimates. H&H have built a fine reputation for their Manx Norton prices and the £30,800 achieved for the 1954/5 30M example on offer can only have enhanced this further.
It would be hard to find a prettier lot than the 1918 Harley Davidson Model J Combination. Beautifully restored in traditional green it realised £22,000. A number of the machines entered were from The Valencia Collection, most of which sold very well. Of particular note was the very attractive 1925 Norton Model 18 that was presented in competition trim and exceeded its estimate at £15,400. The star of the eight bicycle lots, all of which sold, was the Hetchins Magnum Bonam that returned £1,540.
H&H also found new homes for the vast majority of the automobilia items on sale. The fully restored Austin Pathfinder pedal car was on the money at £3,680. An archive of Suzuki GB photographic slides, including images of Sheene and Hailwood, returned £1437.50, while a two volume set of Racing With The David Brown Aston Martins (one of which carried the signatures of 22 celebrities) made over estimate at £1,380.
The next H&H sale will take place at the company’s spiritual home of the Pavilion Gardens, Buxton on April 21, 2010. For more information, visit www.handh.co.uk.
[Source: H&H]
